For the identification of illicit drugs in forensic toxicological casework, analysis can be delayed and potentially compromised due to lengthy sample preparation. However a new technique has been developed that can provide ...

Anyone who has ever wondered why some tomatoes can taste so bland might be interested in the work of two Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists in Fort Pierce, Florida. They are taking two different approaches to ...

New research suggests that the sugar ribose - the "R" in RNA - is probably found in comets and asteroids that zip through the solar system and may be more abundant throughout the universe than was previously thought.

It's a common forensic TV show trope: A crime is committed, there are no suspects, and then detectives find a faint lipstick mark. The sample is put in an evidence bag and sent to the lab. Then boom, they analyze it in minutes ...

(Phys.org)—New research allows scientists to sculpt polymers into two- and three-dimensional shapes, similar to how polypeptides fold into functional three-dimensional shapes. This ability is particularly advantageous for ...

As the holidays draw near, many of us will hop on a plane to visit friends and family – or just get away from it all. Some will be subjected to a swab at the airport to test clothes and baggage for explosives. So how does ...

A University of Texas at Arlington researcher has received a three-year, $400,369 National Science Foundation grant to build a handheld device that could analyze a person's breath to reveal whether certain dangerous gasses ...

(Phys.org) —A team of researchers with members from Mexico, the U.S. and the U.K. has found evidence that suggests the people living in ancient Teotihuacan made an alcoholic beverage named pulque as early as 200 to 550 ...

Chromatography

Chromatography (from Greek χρῶμα chroma "color" and γράφειν graphein "to write") is the collective term for a set of laboratory techniques for the separation of mixtures. The mixture is dissolved in a fluid called the "mobile phase", which carries it through a structure holding another material called the "stationary phase". The various constituents of the mixture travel at different speeds, causing them to separate. The separation is based on differential partitioning between the mobile and stationary phases. Subtle differences in a compound's partition coefficient result in differential retention on the stationary phase and thus changing the separation.

Chromatography may be preparative or analytical. The purpose of preparative chromatography is to separate the components of a mixture for further use (and is thus a form of purification). Analytical chromatography is done normally with smaller amounts of material and is for measuring the relative proportions of analytes in a mixture. The two are not mutually exclusive.